The Other Dragons
by Shiraneth
Summary: A strange group of dragons and their riders appear at Telgar Weyr. Who are they and why are they on Pern? Set in AU after Dragonheart.
1. Chapter 1: Arrival

Chapter 1: Unexpected Arrivals

It was dark. At night, on the war-ridden, nuke-destroyed planet, things were relatively more peaceful. But people were leaving. Illegally, yes, but leaving nevertheless, for various other planets that had been colonized. Planets without this destruction, where new starts could be made.

One of the groups of inhabitants had been working on a genetic project for quite a while. Now they were almost ready, hoping to use it as a weapon against their opponents. But, a group of their enemies had attacked, unexpected, the day before. Now, they were running.

Cornered in a dead end, their leader, desperate, gave the signal. A group of dragons winked _between_.

* * *

Telgar Weyr, Pern, Rukbat System, Early Morning

The watchdragon was sleepily maintaining his post on the heights of Telgar Weyr, when suddenly, a group of strangely colored dragons appeared from _between_, looking exhausted. Managing to land safely on the ground, the dragons then all but collapsed, while their riders leaped down to tend to their beasts. The watchdragon didn't recognize any of them, and they obviously were not from Pern. Whoever had ever seen a red dragon? He bugled the alarm.

_Fiona. Wake up._ Fiona was wakened by her urgent dragon. _Talenth_. she thought, fondly. _What is it, love?_The golden queen dragon, her dragon, Talenth, shook herself a little and turned her massive head to look at her rider with one large green eye whirling with excitement. _There are strange dragons at the gate._ She paused. _Winurth reports one silver, two black, two red, two orange, and two white. All have riders...I did not know there were silver dragons._ Talenth sounded rather disgruntled at the fact that there were dragons she didn't know about.

Fiona smiled as she rose from her bed and got herself prepared. She needed to be out there as Weyrwoman. She paused in front of a mirror. _Weyrwoman._ She had expected it eventually, and had enjoyed her time in Ista Weyr, where she had stood in as the Weyrwoman in the absence of another queen. But...she did miss Cisca, the Weyrwoman before her, and K'lior, the former Weyrleader. Staring at herself, she marveled at how much time had passed and how much she had grown from the surprised Lord Holder's daughter that had impressed Talenth unexpectedly in Telgar's Hatching Grounds.

Mentally shaking herself, she turned to check on Talenth, ready to go. Now was no time to reminisce, not if these strange dragons were a potential threat to her weyr. Hearing a noise at the entrance to the weyr as she mounted Talenth, she turned, to see her weyrmate and Weyrleader, T'mar.

"Weyrwoman." he greeted.

"Weyrleader." she responded, grinning. "Winurth passed the message on to Zirenth as well, I assume?"

"Indeed." he grumbled. "I was enjoying my rest, you know. We just flew Thread."

_Are you two done yet?_ asked Talenth impatiently. _I am ready to fly. Zirenth is ready to fly. We are waiting for you and T'mar._

"The dragons are getting restless." commented Fiona. "Let's go."

T'mar nodded. "I'll meet you outside the weyr."

As T'mar exited the queen's weyr, Talenth took off and winged towards the intruders.

The rider on the silver dragon dismounted and hurriedly looked over her dragon. "You alright, Shironeth?" she inquired worriedly. _I am well,_ replied the silver. _We are all well, except for Minath. His wingtip got grazed by a bullet, but he will be fine. We need rest, though._ The rider nodded. "At least we escaped..." she sunk into mournful reminiscence.

"Taka!" cried one of the black riders. Alertly, the silver rider responded.

"What is it, L'cas? Is Rainith hurt?" asked Taka.

"No, but there is a gold and several bronzes circling above us." L'cas indicated the dragons of Telgar Weyr.

Taka nodded. "That's fine. We need to see if they will shelter us, anyways." Together, the group of dragons and riders awaited the dragons of Telgar to descend.

* * *

Fiona frowned. "I know that Winurth said that these dragons were different, but still..." She was startled by the distinct differences in coloration. Red? White? Black? Silver? Orange? Where did these colors come from? She felt a slight jerk, and grabbed on to the riding harness as Talenth responded to T'mar's signal to land.

On the ground, she stared. These riders...looked as if they had just finished fighting Thread and an army at the same time. They were exhausted, covered in grime, and their dragons were pale. She stepped towards the one who seemed to be the leader.

"Greetings. I am Fiona, weyrwoman of Telgar Weyr, rider of the queen dragon Talenth." she indicated Talenth, who rumbled in response.

"This is the Weyrleader, Tmar, rider of bronze dragon Zirenth." She indicated T'mar.

"And this is F'jian, on bronze Ladirth." F'jian nodded.

"Welcome to Telgar Weyr. May we please hear why a group of strange dragons has decided to land on our doorstep?" said Fiona tartly.

The leader of the dragons nodded. "Allow me to introduce my people."

"I am Taka, rider of silver Shironeth," she continued.

"The dirty blond haired one with his hair tied back is J'mes, rider of red Vamprath.

"The other blond one is L'gel, rider of red Mirketh.

"The shorter brown haired one is L'cas, rider of black Rainith.

"The redhead with the attitude problem is A'ran, rider of black Death.

"The silver haired one is K'sik, rider of orange Minath.

"The taller brown haired one is D'nos, rider of orange Naveth.

"The olive skinned woman is Zikal, rider of white Mossath.

"And the short black haired woman is Ruen, rider of white Hakath."

Each rider nodded as Taka introduced them. Fiona noticed that they all had either inscrutable or arrogant looks on their faces.

"I assume you wish to know why we are here?" inquired Taka. Fiona only nodded.

"Well..." the young woman scratched her neck sheepishly. "We are from Earth."


	2. Chapter 2: Welcome to Telgar Weyr

I forgot to put this in last time, so...

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Dragonriders of Pern series, Anne McCaffrey and Todd McCaffrey do. But all of the original characters(Taka, Ruen, Zikal, A'ran, J'mes, etc.) are mine.

A/N: If the story feels like it's moving slowly, I apologize. I am trying to develop the story, albeit slowly.

* * *

Chapter 2: Welcome to Telgar Weyr

Taka watched the Telgar Weyrleaders warily for their reaction. She didn't have to wait long.

"Earth?" T'mar laughed scornfully. "You couldn't have come here from Earth without a spaceship of some sort or a dragon. You have dragons, but dragons need to see where they're going _between_ to. You've never been here before, so how would you be able to see Pern?" He turned to his fellow bronze rider. "I say that they're just crazy rogue riders."

Taka gave her group warning looks as they seethed with anger at T'mar's slight. _Shironeth,_ she called. _Tell the dragons to make their riders stay calm. We can not afford to alienate these people._ She looked forward again as the previously speechless Weyrwoman decided to speak.

"They may not have come from Earth, T'mar, but they certainly aren't from Pern." said Fiona. "Look at the dragons' coloration. Nowhere on Pern, not even in the Records, are there any black or silver dragons." She turned to the riders. "I repeat, what is your purpose in coming here?"

Shironeth gave a rumble of approval. _This woman is able to see the forest, and not just the trees. I like her._ Taka smiled. "We are seeking asylum from Earth's officials."

Fiona raised an eyebrow skeptically and F'jian gave an ill-concealed snort.

"As improbable as it may seem," Taka continued irritably. "Dragons have been developed on Earth. We are the sole surviving members of the group that created them." She gestured to her riders. "All we're asking is to stay at your Weyr until our dragons recover. Then, if you so wish, we shall leave, and you can return peacefully to your lives."

"I see no problem," said Fiona decisively after a moment's consideration. "Unless you have any particular objections, T'mar, F'jian?" T'mar had a slightly put out look on his face, but otherwise, the two men said nothing. "Very well, then. Please come inside."

Turning, Fiona mounted Talenth, as did T'mar and F'jian with their respective dragons. The three Telgar dragons jumped into the air, closely followed by Taka and her group.

* * *

Inside the weyr, Fiona, dismounting from Talenth called for Terin. "Terin! We have some dragons and riders in need of medical assisstance!" She took a look at the tired riders and their faded dragons, and added, "We need some klah and some food, too!"

Terin came running out of a side room. She took one look at Fiona's face, and gave the Weyrwoman a stern look. "Spill it, Fiona," she said impatiently. "Something is going on."

Internally, Fiona smiled. Terin was still the same girl that she was so many years ago, impatient and impulsive, although that had improved over time. "What makes you think that, Headwoman Terin?" she asked, deliberately using the title.

Terin rolled her eyes. "Weyrwoman, Thread fell yesterday, and we know that Thread doesn't fall everyday. Yet you are asking me for food and medical assistance, meaning that something is going on."

This time, Fiona let her smile show. "You are correct. We have a group of nine dragons and their riders, who claim to have come from Earth." She held up a hand to forestall Terin's startled exclamation. "I'll explain later. All of them look like they haven't eaten in weeks, and one of the dragons has a torn wingtip that needs - "

"Numbweed and stitching," finished Terin, nodding. "Alright, then. Dalvor!" she called.

A young boy who couldn't be a day over eight came running. "Yes, Headwoman?" he asked breathlessly.

Terin eyed him sternly. "Have you been skimping on your numbweed duties again, young Dalvor?" She let a small grin show as Dalvor shifted uncomfortably, suddenly looking at anything but the Headwoman. "Never mind that. Go fetch some numbweed, bandages, thread, and a needle. And while you're at it, tell Nell and Kevin to get some porridge and klah, and to bring it here." Dalvor nodded and scampered off.

Terin turned to Fiona. "Now that I have arranged to assist these dragons and riders of yours, may I meet them?" she asked.

Fiona hesitated for a split second, then replied, "Very well, but I should warn you Terin...These dragons are very different from what you are used to."

Terin frowned in confusion. "How bad could it be?" she asked reasonably. Before Fiona could stop her, she had headed outside. Fiona turned and hurried after Terin, hoping to intercept the young Headwoman before...

"By the First Egg, what...?!" A surprised and shocked voice pierced the weyr, and Fiona groaned. She was too late to stop Terin, but at least she could maintain some order in her weyr. Turning to face the kitchen, she saw that numerous heads and eyes were turned towards the Bowl, where Taka and her group had landed. _Time to restore some peace to the weyr_, thought Fiona. She took a deep breath, smiled, and loudly said, "I will go outside to investigate the source of that noise. Meanwhile, I believe there is still a weyr to feed." She gave the kitchen staff pointed looks, and gestured for the three children that had come running up with food and medicinal supplies to follow her.

* * *

J'mes heard a strange curse come from the dark doorway that the..._what did she call herself again? Ah, that's right, it was Weyrwoman, or something like that._ The doorway that the weyrwoman had disappeared into. Turning, he saw a woman in her late twenties, looking like she would faint.

"Y-your...your dragons...what _happened_ to them?!" she stammered.

J'mes frowned coldly. He had tried to convince Taka that contacting the locals was unnecessary, that the dragons of the Shadow Flight could take care of themselves. But Taka had insisted, and he had yielded. And now this woman was acting like their dragons..._his_ dragon, were sick!

"Our dragons are perfectly normal. In fact, they are probably superior to yours." he stated smugly. Then he frowned. "What gave you the impression otherwise?" he demanded.

L'gel overheard and walked over. "Why are you trying to intimidate this child, J'mes?" he demanded in a heated whisper. "You know Taka told us to behave."

_Actually, to be specific, Taka told you to be polite to these people and to act as if they were fellow Shadow Flight dragons, J'mes. I think that this child is merely confused because of the difference between the coloration of the Shadow dragons and the dragons here on Pern. _Vamprath spoke up now with his own opinions.

J'mes looked up in confusion. "What are you talking about, Vamprath?" He switched to another language he knew, Japanese, assuming that these Pernese people did not know any other language but their own.

_Think about it, J'mes, s_aid Vamprath patiently. _The dragons that greeted us, what color were they?_

"Color?" asked J'mes confusedly. "They were...golden brown?"

"No, one of them was more gold then golden brown," interjected L'gel, also using Japanese.

_Correct, _said Vamprath. _They were golden brown and gold. The golden brown is like bronze. Neither of those colors exist among the Shadow Flight. _

"You mean..." J'mes was struck by a sudden realization. "These dragons are different from our own?"

Vamprath said nothing, instead choosing to scrutinize his right forepaw, as if looking for blemishes in the gleaming red hide.

Terin, tired of being ignored and unable to understand their strange language, spoke up. "Well? What's with your dragon's colors? And why did you call me a child?" She glared at L'gel over the latter.

Mirkith chuckled, a deep, resonating sound in his throat. _Have fun explaining that, L'gel._

L'gel glared at Mirkith, then took a deep breath before turning to Terin, and switching back to English, which was evidently similar to Pernese. "Our dragons are all colored like this where we come from. We don't have any of your colors. And..." he hesitated. "You are much younger than me, therefore I find it fitting to call you 'child'."

Terin frowned and looked like she would have opened her mouth to say more, only to be interrupted by Fiona, accompanied by Dalvor with the medicinal supplies, and Nell and Kevin with the food.

Fiona observed the scene before her: An irate Terin, and the two red riders from Taka's group, the one called J'mes looking irritated, and the one called L'gel looking uncomfortable.

"Terin?" she inquired.

The Headwoman jumped, as if she had been stuck in a trance, and nodded. "Right. I'll distribute the food," she muttered, grabbing a bowl from Nell's stack and ladling porridge in from the cauldron that had been brought out.

Fiona raised an eyebrow, and decided to deal with Terin later. Turning to J'mes, who seemed to be the equivalent of a Weyrleader, she asked, "Where is the dragon with the torn wingtip?"

J'mes looked at her coldly, and then replied stiffly, "That would be orange Minath. His rider K'sik is the silver haired man over there." He pointed to the east end of the Bowl, where an orange dragon crouched, keening softly in pain, a silver-haired man standing by his head, trying to comfort his dragon.

Fiona nodded her thanks before motioning to Dalvor to follow her as she rushed across the Bowl.

* * *

A/N:  
Taka:Perhaps I'm just paranoid, but -  
J'mes: What are you talking about? You are paranoid.  
Taka: ...Shut it, J'mes. Anyways, to anyone who might question my choice of Japanese as another language, it is simply because I know the language and can use that knowledge in later chapters where it might come in handy.  
J'mes: I don't think they really care...who reads author's notes at the bottom of a chapter anyways?  
Taka: ...You definitely will after I am finished with you. *drags J'mes off* *cue screaming*

Shironeth: *cough* Anyhow...I hope that solved any issues people might have. Thank you for reading!


End file.
